8vo, original full brown morocco; both covers paneled and upper cover lettered in gilt; spine with five raised bands, ruled and lettered in gilt; turn-ins gilt; top page edges gilt; decorative endpapers. Fine photogravure frontispiece portrait with tissue guard; title printed in red and black; (14), 84, (8) pages; 21 additional photogravure plates; 1 double-sided facsimile letter; 1 map. Lightly rubbed; near fine. Rare. Finely printed and illustrated by D.B Updike, of The Merrymount Press. Our consignor, Wayne Homren, discussed this book in the November 30, 2003 issue of The E-Sylum, where he wrote: “One of my specialties is U.S. Encased Postage Stamps, and anytime I search a bourse floor for pieces I need for my collection, I usually come up empty-handed. Numismatic literature can present the same type of challenge. Recently I purchased a book relating to my EPS collection that I’d been seeking for nearly twenty years. The last time I saw a copy in person was at the rare book room of the New York Public Library. The Reminiscences of Frederick Ayer was privately printed in Boston in 1923. Frederick was the brother of J.C. Ayer. Together they ran the J.C. Ayer company which was such a prolific advertiser and issuer of encased postage stamps during the Civil War.” This well-illustrated volume is an excellent accompaniment to the unillustrated J.C. Ayer reminiscences listed above.

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